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Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Dribbles and bits on Hampton's Gilbeaux, ex-NSU assistant and Hokies international

Had a nice chat Monday with Hampton coach David Six, who filled us in on all things Lady Pirates. Although it's obviously early, Six said he's been pleasantly surprised by the rapid development of Georgianna Gilbeaux, a rugged incoming freshman guard - not to mention a first-team All-Name candidate - from D.C.'s H.D. Woodson High.

I was intrigued, so about an hour later, while killing time in the Tidewater Community College library, I googled Gilbeaux.

"Do you know Georgianna?" the man sitting next to me asked.

"Not really. Why?"

"She used to play for me in AAU ball."

Turns out I'd had pulled up a keyboard next to Ricardo Foster, an assistant coach on Boo Williams' 15-and-under elite squad. Let's just say he was hardly surprised Gilbeaux was fitting in so well.

Now I can go to that library for the next 100 days and not find anyone who knows Gilbeaux from Stephen Colbert. But on this day, I hit the coincidence jackpot.

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Just when we thought the assistant coach carousel had made its final revolution....

A couple of months ago, Norfolk State's Kenny Edwards was doing what all assistant coaches do this
time of year - scouting the next wave of talent at a faraway AAU tournament - when he received a text from his wife.

"I have a 10-month old son - Charlie - and the text showed him crawling for the first time," Edwards said. "And it hit me - I don't want to miss all those things."

The desire to spend more time at home is a big reason why he's now ex-Norfolk State assistant Kenny Edwards. He recently accepted the job as head girls basketball coach at Chesapeake's Grassfield High.

"I enjoyed my time at Norfolk State, met a lot of great people and learned an awful lot about what it takes to succeed at that level," said Edwards, who spent four seasons with the Spartans. "But it's tough spending that much time on the road, especially with a newborn. Plus I miss running my own program."

Prior to coming to Norfolk State, Edwards was a three-time Beach District Coach of the Year and amassed a 200-139 record as a head coach in 15 seasons.

Spartans coach Debra Clark said she hopes to have NSU's vacant assistant's position filled by the end of the year.

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Virginia Tech, aka the United Nations of the state's women's basketball teams, has four players competing in international tournaments this month. Here's your Hokies scorecard so far:

Taijah Campbell

World University Games

Taijah Campbell, Team Canada

- Averaged 4.3 points and 4.6 rebounds in 14.5 minutes to help Canada to an eighth-place finish out of 16 teams. Campbell notched her tournament-high of 10 rebounds in Canada's Games opener against Japan, and scored a tourney-high 8 points in just 9 minutes in the 7th-place game against Hungary.

FIBA U19 World Championships

Samantha Hill, Canada

- Is averaging 1.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in limited minutes through three games. Had 5 points and 3 rebounds in 12 minutes against China. Hill's Canada squad will take on the United States on Tuesday.

Maddie Penn, Australia

- Has logged just 5 minutes in 4 games for a strong Australian side.

Samantha Panousis, Australia

- Is averaging 8.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists through four games. Lit up Russia for 13 points in 22 minutes and added 11 in a win over Japan.

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Quick hits

- Turnabout is fair play - A couple of months after William and Mary snagged ex-Sacred Heart head coach Ed Swanson to take over the Tribe, new Sacred Heart head coach has added ex-William and Mary assistant Will Ingersoll to her staff with the Pioneers.

- VCU will travel to Columbus, Ohio for the second straight season for a game against Ohio State (head coach Marlene Stollings and assistant Nikki Dawkins are both former Buckeyes). OSU thumped the Rams 88-50 last season. This year's game is scheduled for Nov. 17.

- Finally, who's the best returning player among Virginia's Division I schools? The best 10 players? Drop us a line at ladyswishing@hotmail.com and let us know what you think. Our list of the best 25 returners will be coming soon.

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About Us

Virginia-based Vicki L. Friedman, winner of the 2013 Mel Greenberg Media Award, and Paul White are LadySwish, a blog dedicated to the 13 Division I basketball teams in the state. We love the sport -- its coaches, its players, its fans and its quirks. Both of us are journalists with more than four decades of experience. Our passion fuels us to deliver our best to our fans and followers every day.